Blood Drive: Alternate Story
by Will Wordseeker
Summary: Following the events of Corpse Party: Book of Shadows, Ayumi has been hospitalized and the Book of Shadows is nowhere to be found. What can she do now? Everything seems lost when a mysterious boy approaches her: "If you reclaim the Book of Shadows and use it at Heavenly Host, those who have died there will be revived." Ayumi swears to do it, but will her friends let her go alone?
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1: Awakening  
POV: **Ayumi Shinozaki

I woke up in the middle of the night, and silence was the only thing that could be heard. My head was spinning, and I got hold of my bed, fearing falling on the ground. I stayed motionless, staring at the ceiling, as to convince myself that all the movement was just in my head. Then, I noticed that something was amiss; that wasn't my room.

I tried to stand up, but as I tensed my arms an acute pain hampered my attempt. Was I injured? I carefully palpated where the pain came from, and my fingers encountered what it seemed like gauze wrapped around my arm. I started to examine my body in search of more injured parts, at least the ones that I could reach in my state, and I found that both my arms and thighs were bandaged. What happened? I turned my head to inspect my surroundings, and I realized that I was in a hospital room. How did I get there?

I tried to recall everything I could, to search for the answer in my memories and overcome that bewilderment. I remembered Heavenly Host, although those memories always seemed like a distant nightmare's ones. I also remembered being with Naomi in… Heavenly Host again? No… It was a house, the Shinozaki estate. And then, I remembered holding a book, the Book of Shadows. Headache emerged as my memories became progressively fuzzy, but there was one thing that I was able to recall flawlessly; a faceless creature with Mayu's body, moving erratically while moaning Morishige's nickname. What was that thing?

From that point onwards I could only remember emotions, and fear was the prevailing one. I spent what it seemed like an eternity trying to puzzle out what happened next, until I managed to recollect one thing; my sister. I remembered seeing her face, the joy of looking at her, and then everything turning red. I felt my heart pound and tremors all over my body as I was unfolding the truth; the resurrection spell that created that Mayu-like being backfired, and my big sister, Hinoe, gave her life in my place. I covered my mouth with my trembling hands. I didn't want to believe it, but the image of the blood and my sister's headless body was so clear now that it couldn't be born of my imagination.

"Ah… Aaah…!"

I wanted to scream, but my lungs were not responding. I felt my heart being constricted inside my chest, and I thought I was going to pass out, but instead I was forced to confront all these emotions alone. I cursed the Sachiko Ever After charm, Heavenly Host, Sachiko Shinozaki, her mother, and the Book of Shadows. I cursed them all, and the day I decided to use that stupid book. Even Naomi warned me. Was I out of my mind? How could I have thought that performing a spell which I couldn't understand half its words was a good idea? If only I had brought the Book of Shadows to my big sister… she would have known what to do. But instead I decided to try it anyway, and now I was tied to a hospital bed and my big sister was dead.

I felt guilty for my sister's death, and that I wasn't worth of her sacrifice. My face was already soaked in tears at that point, and I still spent the rest of the night sobbing my heart out, until I got asleep again from exhaustion during daybreak.

The following day mom and dad visited me. I was so glad to see them. They had been worrying that I would never wake up again, and when the hospital told them that I was awake they came straightaway. They also told me that Naomi was the one who brought me to the hospital, and that I had been in a coma for a week.

"A whole week!? How could it be?" I said astonished.

They explained to me everything the doctor told them, and what happened while I was asleep, but as the time passed by I was increasingly worried that no one was saying a word about my sister. I looked at them, at their faces, and they seemed completely overjoyed.

Even if I woke up of what they thought my last sleep, one would expect some kind of bittersweet expression in their face after the initial excitement, as their other daughter didn't make it. Then, the image of Naomi watching Seiko's siblings, oblivious about her big sister's existence, came to my mind. It couldn't be! Did Hinoe suffer the same fate?

The sole idea frightened me. If they didn't remembered her… I wouldn't accept it! She gave her life for me, and I wouldn't let her fall into oblivion. I'll make them remember! But thinking about that was of no use; I had to ask them first.

I was afraid, but finally I managed to arm myself with enough courage to do it.

"Where's Hinoe-san…?" I asked them.

Was that name familiar to them, or would it be source of confusion? Time slowed down as I was analysing every variation in my parent's expression, could it be their face an answer on its own. My mother's cheerful expression changed to a more neutral one.

"Hinoe?" she asked, as my heart skipped a beat. "She is on one of her travels around the world, studying those occult things she likes, and we cannot contact her" she continued. "We will have to wait until she phone us or comes back to tell her."

I was relieved to see that at least they remembered her, but their answer was something I didn't expect. It didn't make any sense at all! It was so vague, but asking further only resulted in confusing them, as if they didn't figure out what was so difficult to understand about their explanation. It was futile. I decided to change the subject and talk about something more enjoyable until it was late and they had to go.

I realized that the following day would be Saturday, and before they went home I asked my mother to phone Naomi and ask her to visit me. She gladly agreed.

That night I dreamt about Hinoe, reliving my memories with her, and the next day I woke up in tears. Not late in the morning the doctor visited me, and after examining my wounds he told me that they were "taking its time" to heal. He explained that my anaemia wasn't severe enough to affect my healing, and that either the analyses were mistaken or they had missed something. The nurse extracted some of my blood, and the doctor also suggested taking samples of my wounds.

"It hurts…!" I complained.

"I'm sorry Ayumi-chan" replied the nurse. "It won't take long."

Not much time after the nurse had left, Naomi entered the room.

"Nakashima-san!" I voiced with enthusiasm. "I didn't expect you to come this early!"

"Class rep.!" said Naomi. "Of course I'm this early! You had me worried."

She told me that after my big sister saved us and I lost consciousness, the house caught fire, and she had to carry me outside in her back. I asked her about the presence we felt in the house wandering its halls, and if she had trouble getting out, but she replied that there were charms all the way out and nothing hindered her.

It was definitely my sister's work. Even in her last moments she made sure we would be able to leave that house in case she didn't make it.

Naomi continued explaining that after we escaped the house, it disappeared without trace. After that, she ripped her sleeves and used them to stop the bleeding in my arms, and then she carried me downhill until she found the road with the empty truck.

She finished explaining that, after a few minutes walking, she encountered a passing car, and it carried them to the hospital.

"You are so brave, Nakashima-san!" I said in amazement. "Thank you for saving me!"

Naomi smiled, and replied that maybe her experience in Heavenly Host made her stronger. She then told me that the following day, when Mochida and Kishinuma asked her where was I, she told them everything.

"Weren't they mad at us?" I asked.

"They didn't say a thing" she replied, shaking her head. "They just skipped school and came to the hospital."

She then continued telling me that, after they saw me and she told them that I had lost a lot of blood, Kishinuma offered himself as a donor.

"Kishinuma-kun?" I asked, surprised.

"Yes" she replied. "He even left the room looking for a doctor, and I didn't had time to explain him that you were already stabilized." she continued, while smiling. "He was so cute."

"What about Mochida?" I inquired.

"He also wanted to donate his blood, although he wasn't sure it would be compatible" she replied, "and he left the room after Kishinuma to calm him down."

I was contented to know that they cared about me that much and that even they offered themselves as donors. It was strange, though. I would expect that kind of behaviour from Mochida; kind and caring, but Kishinuma reaction was something I didn't expect. I thought that, at that point, after all the troubles he had in Heavenly Host to keep me safe, he would already be fed up with that. He left me in doubt. Why would someone like Kishinuma do something so Mochida-like?

"Class rep., are you blushing!?" Naomi exclaimed.

"W-Wha…?" I muttered, while I noticed that, in fact, I had been blushing. "N-No! It's not like that! It's just that I'm glad that you care about me…"

I tried to explain myself, but as I was saying that my face blushed even more. How embarrassing! I was bushing while thinking about boys… I didn't want Naomi to see me as that king of girl!

"It's OK" said Naomi with a smile. "I would be glad too if a boy did that for me" she continued, while blushing slightly. "Also, friends can talk about everything, even about boys."

Naomi considers me as her friend?

I've treated her with some mistrust lately, due to her closeness with Mochida, and I even had some thoughts in Heavenly Host that made me be ashamed of. I assumed that she thought the same about me, to some degree, but the last events had shown me that I was wrong, that Naomi was someone that really cared about me. And I was feeling the same about her, although I didn't notice it until she visited me; Naomi was my friend, and I liked it.

"You know…" I started. "The doctors told me that I will need to stay in the hospital for at least a month or so, and I won't be the class rep. for some time" I said. "So… why don't you call me by my name meanwhile?"

Naomi smiled. "Sure!" She replied. "Although it will take some getting used to."

"Thank you, Naomi-san" I said, trying to conceal my excitement.

I told her what my parents said about my sister, and she agreed that it was strange, especially after what we saw. I wondered if it was prudent to consider what my parents said, and start questioning my memories.

"Ayumi-san" said Naomi. "I haven't told Mochida and Kishinuma that you're awake before so we would have time to talk about what happened that day. But, if there is nothing more you want to talk about, would you like me to tell them?" She continued. "I'm sure they will be glad to know."

"Yes, please" I answered.

After I replied her, Naomi phoned them.

In less than an hour, Kishinuma was there, and Mochida arrived not long after accompanied by Yuka, that also wanted to come. It was a warm meeting, and we spent the remaining day laughing and joking, until the sun was setting and everybody had to go home.

That night I fell asleep with a smile.

The next morning I received a mysterious guest. It was a girl around my age, with blonde long hair tied in two ponytails and cyan eyes, wearing an extravagant dress that could be a doll's one.

"So… you must be Shinozaki's little sister, right?" She said with a sassy demeanour, without even introducing herself.

"W-What…?" I replied, confused.

Did she know my sister?

The girl approached the bed, shamelessly studying every part of my body. It was awkward, especially when she didn't even try to dissimulate when she analysed my feminine shapes.

"W-Who are you…?" I asked, while instinctively covering my chest.

She looked at me, staring right into my eyes, and approached her face to mine, until there was less than a hand between us. From that distance I could smell her perfume, and I was sure that she did the same with me. Then, she smirked, and returned to a straight stance.

"Yes, you are definitely Shinozaki's little sister" she said. "You have the same eyes as her… and her lips."

What!? Did she just say lips?

"And you have the same kind of power she had. I can sense it" she continued.

The same kind of power as Hinoe? What was she talking about?

"But your smell is kinda disappointing" she said. "Those wounds stink like darkening."

Darkening could be smelled? Who was that girl, and what was her relation with my sister? She had been acting sassy since she entered that room, and I didn't even know her name. That attitude was starting to bother me.

"Who are you?" I asked, visibly annoyed.

She smirked again, as if pressing my buttons produced her some kind of satisfaction, and sat in one of the room's seats.

"My name is Magali Mizuki, and I was an associate of your sister as a member of the Wiccan Institute" she said.

"The Wiccan Institute?" I asked, as it was the first time I heard that name.

"Yes" she replied. "The Wiccan Institute is a research community where those familiarized with the occult world share their findings" she continued. "Your sister was a member, and I worked with her a few times, assisting her as a medium."

"A medium?" I asked, astonished. "You mean… communicating with spirits?"

Magali looked at me, with a sceptic expression.

"Didn't your sister tell you?" she said, and after a few seconds she continued; "Well, I suppose she had her reasons."

As Magali said that, I realized that I didn't really know a lot about my sister's life. She always answered with vague responses when I asked her about her job, and I assumed that it was just difficult to explain. But, after Magali told me that, the idea of my sister deliberately hiding details about her life became a possibility.

"Anyway, your sister's spirit asked me to give you a message just before disappearing" said Magali.

"Hinoe's… spirit?" I maundered.

I felt those words as a frozen spike stabbing my heart. Although I had already accepted my sister's fate, my parent's words gave me the false hope that she somehow managed to escape. I felt stupid.

"Then she is really gone…" I said.

"Well, she contacted me as a ghost, so I'm pretty sure she is dead" replied Magali.

She was so rude, and either she didn't realize how much she could hurt talking like that or she didn't care. I reached my limit, and I couldn't contain my tears any longer. I tried to conceal it, but I ended up sobbing in front of her.

Magali made a concerned expression, and then looked aside.

"She wanted you to recover the Book of Shadows" said Magali, while still looking aside.

"Huh…?" I replied, as I didn't hear her.

"Your sister, Shinozaki… She wanted you to retrieve the Book of Shadows." Magali faced me. "She said that you were the only one capable to do it."

I was completely puzzled, as the Book of Shadows disappeared along with the Shinozaki estate, and Naomi told me that there was nothing left.

"B-But… How am I supposed to do that…?" I asked, while drying my tears with my gown.

"I dunno…" Magali replied. "I just asked her when I lost track of her spirit."

"What do you mean…?" I asked, clueless.

"I mean that I can no longer contact with her spirit in this world, so she must be somewhere else" she explianed.

I remembered Heavenly Host, and how the people that died in that cursed place had their spirits trapped there, in a separate dimension, and I wondered if it was the same for my sister. Was her spirit trapped in that house and disappeared along with it?

We both stood in silence, ruminating about Hinoe's words, and after a while Magali broke that silence.

"Hmmm… What's your relation with the Book of Shadows to begin with?" Magali asked.

I explained to her what happened in Heavenly Host, how I found the Book of Shadows, and that I tried to use it to revive my friends. I told her that the spell backfired and would have killed me if it wasn't for Hinoe's intervention, and that both the book and the house disappeared afterwards.

After I finished explaining everything to her, she made a thoughtful expression.

"Well… I still don't have a clue about what Shinozaki had in mind, but there are two other associates of your sister that were pretty close to her" Magali said. "Maybe they know something that we don't."

Magali stood up, and looked to where the door was.

"Will you ask them?" I asked.

"Yes" replied Magali. "This entire thing about that cursed school, the Book of Shadows and forbidden spells has caught my attention. I have the feeling that there is something really BIG beneath all of this" she continued, trying to conceal her excitement. "Also, I would LOVE to see the Book of Shadows with my own eyes. So, if I find what you are supposed to do to retrieve it, I'll tell you."

She walked towards the room's door, and opened it, preparing to leave.

"See you, little Shinozaki" she said, as she stood in the door.

"Good bye, Mizuki-san" I replied, smiling. "Thank you."

She smirked, and then left the room, closing the door behind her.

What an unusual person, I thought, and I spent the rest of the day thinking about all the things Magali said. Were all Hinoe's associates as peculiar as her? And what did she mean by the same kind of power as my sister?

It was a whole bunch of information and I needed to internalize it.

It took me a month to be able to walk again, and almost another one of rehabilitation to feel strong enough to leave the hospital. During that time, Naomi visited me regularly, and every Saturday Kishinuma, Mochida and Yuka-chan joined us. It became my favourite day of the week. My mother visited me almost every day, and my father brought me my PlayStation Portable and gave me a laptop so I could still communicate with my friends and entertain myself. Although I didn't ask them again about Hinoe, I still mentioned her in our talks to make sure they remembered her, and they did.

I would have liked to meet Magali again, and ask her more about my sister's life, but she never returned. I wondered what happened to her.

Resuming school wasn't easy. Every time I went there, memories of my lost friends flood my mind, and I had missed so many school days that everything the teacher said was Greek to me. Thankfully, Naomi, Mochida and even Kishinuma offered me their notes, and a new teacher assistant, Ms. Kuon, aided me to make up the lessons I missed.

She reminded me of Ms. Yui, as she cared about her students, but in a gentler way. However, her appearance was totally different; she had white hair with a single long plait behind her back, and her eyes were sky blue. But there was something about her that intrigued me.

Sometimes, when she talked with me, her voice sounded as if something was saddening her. I wouldn't have noticed it if it were only for her face, as she concealed it impeccably, but as she talked to me frequently, helping me in my study, I started to notice it.

Was there something I could do? I appreciated Ms. Kuon, as a teacher and for all the effort she put into me, and I wanted to help her. I decided that, if the occasion arose, I would ask her.

One week after I went back to school, while going back to home after class, a hooded man was waiting in front of my house. When I approached my house entrance, that guy faced me.

"Shinozaki, right?" Said the hooded guy.

Did he just say my name? I looked at the hooded man, confused.

He was a young boy, maybe around Yuka's age, wearing a black hooded sweatshirt with golden edges, and black short trousers with the same pattern. Although he had his hood put on, his dark cyan hair could still be seen.

His slate blue eyes were gazing at me with a serious expression.

"Y-Yes…" I replied. "Who are you?"

Without losing a second the hooded guy replied.

"My name is Misuto Kiriya, and I was an associate of your sister" he said.

Another associate of my sister? Was he from the Wiccan Institute too?

"Listen carefully, Shinozaki, as what I am about to say is of the upmost importance" Misuto said, and his face accompanied the seriousness of his words. "There is a way to bring back your friends lost in Heavenly Host and break the curse once and for all, but your cooperation is essential."

Those words shocked me. Did he really know a way to bring them back? I couldn't believe it, but he looked dead serious about that, and I really wanted to believe that.

"W-What do I have to do…?" I asked, unsure.

"You must retrieve the Book of Shadows and use it" replied the boy.

I felt discouraged by that answer.

"But I already tried to use it, and it didn't work" I told him.

But the boy expression remained unchanged.

"You did it wrong" said Misuto. "You tried to revive someone whose soul was trapped in a different dimension" he explained. "It's like trying to revive someone that doesn't exist."

That's what we did wrong? I haven't thought about that, but Yuki already explained that the spirits of those who died in Heavenly Host were bonded to it.

"What should I have done then?" I asked, clueless.

Misuto looked straight into my eyes, with such a serious expression that he almost seemed to be annoyed.

"You must return to Heavenly Host" he replied. "If you reclaim the Book of Shadows and use it at Heavenly Host, those who have died there will be revived."

I was completely bewildered. Return to Heavenly Host? Use there the Book of Shadows? How was I supposed to retrieve it in the first place? I really wanted to undo what happened in Heavenly Host, but what that boy was asking me was far beyond my capacity.

"B-But… H-How…?" I babbled, as I couldn't decide which question make first.

Misuto ignored my gibberish and continued.

"How far are you willing to go for your friends?" He asked.

Returning to Heavenly Host frightened me, but the memories of my lost friends haunted me every day. I was the one who made that stupid charm and brought them to that damned school, and it was my responsibility to bring them back. It was my burden.

"I'll do whatever it takes" I replied him, determined.

For some reason Misuto seemed surprised at my words, and his face quickly changed to a satisfaction smirk.

"All right" he said. "Tomorrow, after school, you must go to this place."

Misuto took his hand out of his pocket, gave me a tiny paper, and then he started to walk away.

"H-Hey! Wait!" I demanded him.

He paused and turned his head to me.

"You'll get your answers there" he concluded, after resuming his walk.

I looked at the paper and there was an address written there, with an annotation under it;

Makina Shinozaki.


	2. Annex 1

**Annex 1: Characters (according to chapter 1)**

The following chapter is pretty intensive in terms of new characters and new names. Some of them are already part of the Corpse Party universe, but only those who have played all games or read Corpse Party Cemetery0 will know them (or read the wiki, like I did).

To make things easier for the casual fan I will make a brief spoiler-free description of them. They can also be consulted in the Corpse Party wiki.

**Magali Mizuki****  
Appearance: **Magali Mizuki is the cyan-eyed blonde girl wearing extravagant dresses. She appears to have the same age as Ayumi around 17 years old.

**Personality:** Magali is generally sassy and direct; she does and says what she wants. She also has a manipulative side, and likes to see the reactions of others to unaccustomed situations. This may give the impression that she does things without thinking first, or that she lacks any sense of manners, but in truth she does them on purpose. She does, however, have difficulties understanding others' feeling, and gets affected every time her actions lead to a situation that reminds her that. Making people around her sad or directly angry at her is not what she usually wants.

**Misuto Kiriya**  
**Appearance:** Misuto Kiriya is the blue-eyed blue-haired hooded boy. She seems to have around 15 years old.

**Personality:** Misuto appears to be an extremely serious and centred person, rarely showing a smile or beating around the bush. He tends to be the smartest guy in the room, and prefers to ignore things he considers dumb, out of place or insulting rather than reply to them and lose focus on what's important.

**Kuon Niwa**  
**Appearance:** Kuon Niwa is the white-haired woman with a single long plait. She has sky-blue eyes and seems to be the same age as Ms. Yui, around 23 years old.

**Personality:** Kuon is a calm and caring teacher. She is very kind toward her students, and has a good sense of manners. Her amiable and respectful attitude makes others appreciate her, but Ayumi notices some sadness in her voice.

**Other characters:**

**Hinoe Shinozaki**  
Hinoe was Ayumi's older sister. She was a gentle and friendly woman. She saved Ayumi's and Naomi's life after the resurrection spell they tried backfired and was about to kill them, but instead she lost her own.

**Makina Shinozaki**  
Makina was the great-great-aunt of Ayumi Shinozaki, and the aunt of Yoshie Shinozaki. Her house is the place where Misuto have told Ayumi to go.


	3. Chapter 2

Well, this is the second chapter of the story. I hope you like it!

Reviews would be highly appreciated, as well as any suggestions, so feel free to comment anything you want.

I must remark that my goal is to make a good 'videogame' story, the kind of plot I would like to see in Corpse Party: Blood Drive, not a 'book' story. That means that the story will continue with the Corpse Party formula; different parties doing different things simultaneously that affect the other parties and allow them to progress, wrong endings (that would be added in the form of annexes), choices (although for literary reasons I must focus on the right ones and only tell what would have happened if the player chose the other/wrong option), the addition of a new character that represents the player (something like the Avatar mechanic you see in Fire emblem: Awakening for example), and no favouritism among the different characters (I personally love them all, as a writer I mean).

Every character has its own motivations, strengths and weaknesses, and I will try to reflect them in the story.

Enjoy!

* * *

**Chapter 2: The lost grimoire  
POV:** Naomi Nakashima

That day Ayumi seemed distracted, at least more than usual. When I asked her she just told me that she was fine, but my intuition was telling me otherwise. I noticed that that morning, she was carrying a small backpack, and that she took it again after school. She was clearly planning to go somewhere.

When we were saying goodbye to each other she looked even more nervous than before, and I tried to ask her again what was worrying her, but she assured me that she was just tired. She was clearly hiding something, and as we parted ways, I decided to secretly follow her. She had me worried.

I was also reluctant to go home anyway, as my relation with my mother had been tense since she lost all memories of Seiko. I couldn't pretend that she never existed, and every time my mother suggested it she drove me mad. I knew that I could just feign it, that Seiko was not real, but I couldn't. I feared above all things to forget Seiko too; that over time playing that role I could start questioning her existence myself. But I would not allow that to happen; Seiko was real, and she would live in my memories forever.

I followed Ayumi for forty minutes, and she was so absorbed that she didn't notice that I had been following her the whole time, and after a while she stopped in front of an old abandoned estate. She seemed confused, and stood there for almost two minutes, staring the house entrance, and looking something in her hand.

I decided to show up.

"Ayumi-san!" I said, as I approached her.

"N-Naomi-san…!?" replied Ayumi, surprised. "W-What are you doing here…?"

I told her that she had me worried, and that her backpack gave away that she was going somewhere that wasn't her house. She looked at her bag, and made an ashamed expression.

"Was it that obvious…?" she muttered, looking embarrassed.

I asked her what was she doing there, and she told me what the hooded boy told her the day before.

"Then… there is a way to revive them…?" I said, perplexed.

If the hooded boy was right, Seiko could be revived. And we would be together again! Heavenly Host was a terrifying place, but as long as I could save Seiko from that eternal suffering I didn't mind going back.

"I don't know how that boy learnt that, though..." she said. "But he said that I'll get answers here."

Ayumi looked at the abandoned house entrance, that was strewn with 'no trespassing' tape.

"What is this place…?" I asked her.

"I'm not sure" replied Ayumi. "But the address that the hooded boy gave me had this annotation."

Ayumi showed me the paper with the address, and I could read a name under it.

"Shinozaki…?" I said, confused.

"I think this was the house of some familiar of mine" replied Ayumi.

The image of Yoshie Shinozaki's house came to my mind.

"It could be dangerous…" I told her. "Why you didn't tell me?"

"I… didn't want to endanger anyone else… anymore" said Ayumi, visibly remorseful.

"Ayumi-san… W-What are you talking about…?"

I was afraid at what Ayumi could mean with those words.

"It is all my fault…" said Ayumi. "I… I was the one who brought that charm… and because of that…" she continued, while closing tightly her eyes.

I noticed that her hands were trembling, and tears were emerging from her closed eyes. I had to comfort her.

"Ayumi-san, that's not…" I said, but Ayumi interrupted me.

"And I… I decided to use that book…" she said. "And then… my big sis… my sis…"

Her words were cut off as she started to gasp, and her tears flowed down her cheeks.

I didn't know that she felt so guilty for what happened. I myself have never thought her as responsible for that, and neither Satoshi nor Kishinuma have mentioned anything. The only one that was blaming her was herself.

I knew that there was nothing I could say to comfort her, as I felt the same kind of guilt with Seiko's death, so I just approached Ayumi and embraced her. I put one of my hands behind her head, and guided it to rest in my shoulder. She was reluctant to accept my hug at first, but she quickly surrendered to it and embraced me back.

"I'm sorry… Naomi…" said Ayumi in a choked voice. "I… I…"

"Shhh… I know" I replied. "But nobody blames you. It wasn't your fault."

I hold Ayumi's shoulders and looked at her eyes.

"Actually you saved our lives, don't you remember?" I said.

"Huh…?" replied Ayumi.

"You went back to Heavenly Host to save us" I told her. "You saved us."

Ayumi dried her tears with her sleeve, and looked calmer.

"Let's do this together, as friends" I said with a smile.

"Y-Yeah…" she replied, smiling me back. "Thank you, Naomi."

Breaking the tape was easy, and as we passed through the entrance we noticed that the house interior was in a good condition. I told Ayumi that I thought that someone was living there, and she agreed.

"Uhm… Helloo…?" I said, but nobody replied.

"This house gives me a feeling like Yoshie's house, but in a different way…" said Ayumi. "Better to take care."

We walked through the hallway and a dining room, but there was nothing unusual apart from being a very old house, without any modern domestic appliance, but we eventually found a room that was different.

"Naomi, look…!" exclaimed Ayumi, while maintaining her voice low.

The room's walls were full of old newspapers depicting Heavenly Host elementary school, disappearances, never-ending name lists, and unaccountable photos showing people with their faces covered in black.

"W-What is this…?" I asked, bewildered.

Ayumi examined the room's walls.

"It seems that whoever lives here is well aware of the Heavenly Host curse…" she said.

She started to examine carefully the name lists, and after a few seconds she found something that shocked her.

"It's… It's us…!" blurted Ayumi. "We are listed here…!"

I went as fast as I could to where Ayumi was, and looked at the list.

"How… How can this be…?" I mumbled.

We were definitely listed there. Naomi Nakashima, 16, Kisaragi Academy… Ayumi Shinozaki, 17, Kisaragi Academy… Satoshi Mochida, 17…

"…Seiko… Shinohara…!" I muttered.

Her name had a cross mark on its side, like almost everyone else, but Ayumi, Satoshi, Yuka-chan, Kishinuma and I had our names highlighted instead. Almost everyone else in the other lists had the cross mark too.

"It seems that we are the most recent survivors…" said ayumi. "Although these last two names from Paulownia Academy have a question mark instead."

While I was looking at the photos, I glimpsed a light coming from between two planks one side of the room. I approached it and I noticed that it was in fact a door.

"There is a door here…" I told Ayumi.

We examined the door, and after some discussion we decided to open it. Behind it, there was a staircase leading to what it appeared to be a candle-lit basement. There could be someone there.

"H-Hellooo…?" Called Ayumi.

Then, a woman's voice replied.

"Over here" said the woman's voice coming from the basement.

Ayumi and I looked to each other, and then descended the stairs.

There were three persons around a table, all of them looking at us as we were descending the stairs. None of them looked threatening.

There was an old woman with long, messy grey hair, wearing a brown jacket slightly torn apart. She reminded me one of these old cat ladies… but she looked cordial. She was the one who called us.

With her there was a tall black haired man, maybe in his mid-thirties, with dark eyes and three days stubble, dressing like an office worker, although without a tie and having a more casual look. He had a confident expression.

On his side, leaning on the wall, there was a boy, around the same age as mine, with wavy light brown hair and blue eyes. He was wearing regular everyday clothes, nothing unusual for someone of his age. He looked curious, but reserved.

I noticed that the table they were standing around was covered in old photos and plans of Heavenly Host.

"You must be Hinoe's little sister, Ayumi-chan" said kindly the old woman to Ayumi. "You look just like her when she was young."

"Y-Yes…" Ayumi replied. "Who are you…? How do you know my sister?" She asked, puzzled.

One of the photos depicted a toddler Sachiko in arms of what seemed her mother, and another young woman was with them, and I realized that the other woman in the photo was the old woman.

"I'm Makina Shinozaki, your great-great-aunt" the old woman replied. "I've been looking for a way to stop Yoshie's curse since it was casted, fifty-five years ago."

That explained what we saw in that room…

"And I meet your sister, Hinoe-chan, when she, like you, entered this house looking for answers" Makina explained to Ayumi. "Seventeen years ago."

Seventeen years ago!? Both Ayumi and I were shocked at those words. It was so much time ago, even before I was born.

"B-But… she must have had ten years by that time!" said Ayumi, dazed. "What was she doing here?"

Makina smiled.

"Your sister, Hinoe-chan, was an extraordinary individual even at a young age, showing fascination for both the study of the occult and our family heritage" explained Makina. "Her curiosity was so strong that she eventually noticed the existence of the Heavenly Host curse by herself, and after some research she realized that it originated roughly at the same time that Yoshie Shinozaki died, and her daughter, Sachiko-chan, disappeared."

Everybody in the room was attentively listening.

"Suspecting this wasn't a coincidence, she decided to investigate Yoshie's house, but there was nothing but an empty plot there" said Makina. "It was as it never existed."

I remembered the first time we arrived where Sachiko's house should have been, and how there was nothing at first.

"But Hinoe-chan knew that the house was there, albeit somehow hidden, and started to look for a way to force it to appear" she explained. "She eventually ended up here, an old Shinozaki house, looking for the key among its old books."

Makina smile faded away.

"Although we didn't succeed" she added.

"H-How can this be…?" I asked, confused. "That house appeared by itself, and we did nothing to make it appear."

Makina looked thoughtful. It seemed that she and Ayumi's sister spent a lot of time trying to make that house appear, but Ayumi and I just came across it. Why did it appear to us?

"Can you tell us everything you can remember about that day?" asked the white-shirted man. "Maybe it helps us to understand better how the curse works."

Ayumi and I explained everything we could remember, from the moment we left the train station until I carried Ayumi to the hospital. We explained that at first there was nothing there, just an empty plot, but when we came back, the house was already there.

"It was weird" I told them. "The missing truck driver, the endless woods… It was as we hadn't any choice but to return to that house."

"And once inside, a voice told me where the Book of Shadows was hidden" added Ayumi.

"I see…" replied the man. "Please, can you tell us what you saw inside that house?" he asked us.

Ayumi told them that the house gave her the same feeling as Heavenly Host; it was a ruinous place overrun with ghosts, blood and decay. We told them also that Yoshie's bedroom had a shrine with the Sachiko proxy doll, and that the house's basement where we found the Book of Shadows was well supplied with witchcraft materials.

"Yoshie must be behind that" asserted Makina, visibly annoyed. "That damned woman didn't want Hinoe-chan to find the Book of Shadows and end up breaking her curse. That's why the house never appeared to her."

Yoshie's curse? It's true that we found the book in her house, that she had a shrine with the instructions to do the Sachiko Ever After charm, and the materials to do the spell, but why would she perform that curse? Why would she offer her own daughter as an offering?

The white-shirted man took the word.

"Well… what Ayumi and her friend saw strengthen the hypothesis that Yoshie was the one who casted the curse, and probably is the one controlling it" he said to Makina. "But why did she want Ayumi to find the book?"

I've never thought of Heavenly Host as something so complex. For me, it was just a damned place created by the vengeful spirit of a little girl whose only purpose was to torment the living, and that appeasing her would put an end to that, but it was clear that I was wrong.

"There was a girl… Naho Saenoki…" said Ayumi. "She also entered Yoshie's house, found the instructions to do the Sachiko in the Ever After charm, and published them in her blog" she continued. "That's how I came upon the charm."

After Ayumi told that, the white-shirted seemed to figure out something.

"I think we came across something here" he said. "It seems that whoever is controlling the curse wants it to become stronger. It didn't allow someone with the potential to break the curse to find the Book of Shadows, but allowed Naho Saeonki to find the proxy doll and make the charm popular" he explained.

He was right. Naho's blog was pretty popular, and many of her fans ended up in Heavenly Host with their friends as a result of its last update.

"Ayumi could have been a future threat, like her sister was" continued the white-shirted man. "So it just let her find the Book of Shadows first and kill herself trying to revive one of her friends" he concluded. "Thankfully, Hinoe arrived in time."

Yes, Ayumi's sister saved us, but she gave her life and the Book of Shadows was still inaccessible. The man didn't say it, but it was clear that we messed it up, and our actions only benefited the curse. I looked at Ayumi and she seemed concerned. She probably came to the same conclusion as I.

"A blue-haired boy told me that using the Book of Shadows in Heavenly Host can break the curse and revive our friends" Ayumi told them, visibly anxious. "…Is that possible?"

"You must be talking about Misuto Kiriya" said Makina.

"You know him?" asked Ayumi.

"Yes" she replied. "He is a talented clairvoyant and a member of that Wiccan Institute…" explained Makina. "He was the one who told me you would come here today."

The way Makina talked about the Wiccan Institute suggested that she didn't like it very much.

"And he could be correct" said the white-shirted man. "Although resurrection is somewhat possible, I've never seen a resurrection spell work on someone dead for more than a few days. But the Book of Shadows is said to have the most powerful spells of ancient times, and Heavenly Host seems to follow its own rules too…" he explained.

"But we still need the Book of Shadows…" said Ayumi, discouraged.

"Right…" replied the man with a thoughtful posture.

We were on a dead end again; without the book, all we could do was to speculate. I felt powerless. Both Makina Shinozaki and the white-shirted man had a much better comprehension of the subject, and I was just a high school student drawn there by fatefulness. Who was that man by the way? We still didn't know who he and the boy that accompanied him were. It may sound a little impolite, but I had to ask.

"You seem familiar with curses…" I said to the white-shirted man. "Who are you?"

The man looked at me, completely puzzled. Did I say something odd…? But his face quickly changed as he realized what I was asking.

"Oh, you're right! I haven't introduced myself yet!" he said, while laughing at himself.

The brown-haired boy was now staring at him with the same puzzled look he had seconds before.

"My name is Takahiro, and I have some experience with vengeful spirits and their pesky curses" he said while still smiling. "I've been lending a hand to Makina-senpai for some time, trying to find a way to break that damned school curse."

Takahiro turned his head, facing the brown-haired boy.

"Aaand this quiet boy over here is Ben, my pupil" he said, making a satisfied smile.

I looked at the brown-haired boy, and I noticed that he was looking at me too, but as soon as we made eye contact he looked away, pretending he wasn't paying attention.

"Don't worry" Takahiro told me. "He is a kind hearted boy, although very shy" he explained, and then looked at him. "Especially around girls he likes."

W-What…!?

"T-Takahiro…!" blurted Ben, embarrassed.

Takahiro burst into laughter.

"I am not being shy!" said Ben to Takahiro, noticeably upset. "I just didn't have anything to say...!"

But Takahiro still couldn't stop laughing, and Ben remained annoyed. He looked at Ayumi and me, made a determined face, and then approached us. His face was progressively blushing as he was getting closer, but he sustained eye contact all the way until he was in front of us.

"My name is Ben. Nice to meet you" he said, and then did a reverence.

That reverence stupefied me. I really didn't expect that. I introduced myself and returned his reverence, and Ayumi did the same after me.

After the introduction, Takahiro made a broad contented smile, and Ben returned to where he was before and leaned on the wall again. That silly situation left the atmosphere much less tense, and I was glad about that, but Ayumi still seemed concerned.

"Another of Hinoe's associates, a blonde girl, told me that Hinoe-san said that I was the only one capable of retrieving the Book of Shadows" Ayumi told them. "What did she mean…?"

"I think I've found the answer to that" said a man's voice coming from upstairs.

The first to descend the stairs was a hooded boy with a serious face. I supposed that he was Misuto Kiriya, as he matched the description Ayumi gave me. He was followed by a blonde girl wearing an extravagant dress.

"M-Mizuki-san…!" said Ayumi, surprised.

"Long time no see, Shinozaki-chan" replied the blonde girl, with a self-satisfied smile.

Another person descended the stairs behind her, and when I realized who it was I couldn't believe it.

"Kuon-sensei…!" I said.

"I'm glad to see you, Naomi-san, Ayumi-chan" replied Ms. Kuon kindly.

What was our teacher doing there? Was she one of Ayumi's sister associates?

"I wondered if you would come here too after sending Ayumi-chan" said Makina to Misuto in a bitter tone. "Tell me, what are you planning to do?"

"Relax, 'grandma' Shinozaki" replied Misuto. "We are here to help Hinoe's sister to bring her friends back without getting herself killed."

"And tell her how to retrieve the Book of Shadows" added the blonde girl while looking at Ayumi with a confident smile.

"You must be the hooded boy Ayumi-chan talked about" said Takahiro to Misuto. "Are you all Hinoe-san's associates?"

"Yes" replied Ms. Kuon in a calm tone. "My name is Kuon Niwa, and they are Misuto Kiriya and Magali Mizuki. Nice to meet you."

Ms. Kuon then made a modest reverence.

"Nice to meet you" politely replied Takahiro, returning her the reverence. "My name is Takahiro, and this is…"

"I'm Ben…" he said, interrupting Takahiro.

"Nice to meet you, Ben" replied Kuon with a smile that made Ben blush slightly. "I'm glad to see you again, Shinozaki-sama" said Ms. Kuon to Makina.

"Thank you Niwa-san" replied Makina. "It's always a pleasure to meet you."

Makina's attitude towards Ms. Kuon was much friendlier than the one she had with Misuto and Magali, although I perceived some melancholy in her words.

"Mizuki-san" Ayumi said enthusiastically. "Have you found a way to retrieve the Book of Shadows?"

"It's only a hunch, however" replied Misuto. "But it's worth a trying."

Misuto approached Ayumi.

"Shinozaki, I want to try something" said Misuto, "but I need you to close your eyes and listen carefully to my words."

Ayumi looked confused, but agreed and closed her eyes. Everyone else in the room had all its attention focused on them.

"I want you to remember the sensations you felt when you had the Book of Shadows in your hands, with as much detail as possible" told her Misuto. "Its weight, its texture, its odour… everything you can remember about it."

Makina looked shocked, as if she just realized something.

"Now I need you to extend your hands and visualize the Book of Shadows on them, as if you were holding it right now, in this very room" continued Misuto.

Ayumi asserted with her head and extended her hands.

"Focus all your attention on the book on your hands and the sensations it gives you" he told her. "You can feel its weight in your arms."

Then, Ayumi lowered her arms a bit, as if she was really holding something with them. Did she do it on purpose?

I looked at Misuto and he seemed nervous, but took a deep breath and continued.

"The reason you can feel its weigh right now…" he made a slight pause "…is that you really have the Book of Shadows in your hands…!"

A blazing light engulfed the room suddenly, and a strong wind started to swirl around Ayumi. I covered my eyes with my hand and took a step back. What is happening!?

"Ayumi-san…!" I screamed.

I was afraid, but after a pair of seconds the light and the wind faded away. I looked at Ayumi to see what happened to her, and what I saw was beyond my comprehension.

I saw Ayumi standing in the same spot, and her face was flooded with horror. Her arms were still raised, but she was holding something.

"The… the Book of Shadows…!" uttered Ayumi.

There was no doubt; what Ayumi has holding was the Book of Shadows. The size, the colour, and that threatening skull sewn onto its cover, it was exactly how I remembered it.

Misuto had the same face as Ayumi, but everybody else in the room reacted with astonishment.

"It worked Misuto-kun!" euphorically yelled Magali. "You were right!"

Magali shook Misuto's shoulder while congratulating him, and he made a confident smile to Kuon, that returned him the smile.

"That was impressing, Misuto-kun" said Takahiro, praising him. "Well done."

What did he do? I didn't see anything with all that light, but for some reason it seemed that everyone except Ayumi and me knew what happened.

"How did you know that that would work?" asked Makina to him.

"I wasn't sure" answered Misuto. "But Hinoe told me long ago the reason why she suspected that the Book of Shadows was in Yoshie's house" he said. "She told me that it was the Shinozaki bloodline duty to protect the Book of Shadows, and when Mizuki told me that Ayumi-san found the book there, I knew that Hinoe's conjecture was right; that Yoshie Shinozaki was the one the Book of Shadows had been bestowed upon."

"It was supposed to be a family secret" said Makina. "I hope you haven't told it to anyone else."

Misuto ignored Makina's words and continued explaining his deduction to Takahiro instead.

"Hinoe also told me that the Shinozaki family had a long history of witchcraft practitioners" Misuto explained. "And when she said that Ayumi was the only one capable to retrieve the Book of Shadows I thought that she was referring to some kind of power related to the Shinozaki bloodline"

As Misuto was speaking I wondered if Ayumi knew anything of that, but judging from the look on her face I supposed that she was as clueless as I.

"But after some time I pondered if what Hinoe meant wasn't about a Shinozaki-exclusive power, but a feature of the Book of Shadows itself" he explained. "Maybe Hinoe's ancestors bonded the Book of Shadows to them just in case it got stolen, and as Hinoe's sister was the first Shinozaki to touch the Book of Shadows after Yoshie's death, she inherited its ownership."

"I-Its ownership…?" I asked.

"Yes" replied Ms. Kuon smiling. "Ayumi-chan is the new guardian of the Book of Shadows."

"The book would still be inaccessible if you two died after using it" told me Misuto. "But thanks to Hinoe, no matter how far the Book of Shadows is from Ayumi now, she can recall it at any moment using this method."

"Definitely impressive" said Takahiro to him. "Your help couldn't have come at a better time."

"W-Would you help us to revive our friends too…?" asked Ayumi to Ms. Kuon.

"Sure" kindly replied Ms. Kuon.

"But we will need to learn everything we can about the Heavenly Host curse" added Misuto. "That includes giving us the Book of Shadows to study it."

Misuto extended his hand, but Ayumi didn't seem to like the idea of giving the book to someone else, and kept the book with her. I remembered what she told me about the book falling in the wrong hands, and while they helped her to retrieve it, we still didn't know them well.

Ayumi's distrust seemed to annoy Misuto, and her inaction bothered him even more. Just as Misuto was about to say something, Ms. Kuon posed her hand on his shoulder, and he stayed silent. His angry face changed to a sombre one and moved aside, letting Ms. Kuon stay in front of Ayumi.

"Ayumi-chan, I know that what we are asking you isn't easy" said Ms. Kuon. "It must be so confusing to meet so many people in a situation like this, people that somehow already knew you, but you have never heard about."

Ayumi looked at Ms. Kuon's face.

"I wish we had time to know each other, to talk about our lives, what we like, and what we wish" continued Ms. Kuon. "But each day it passes more people can get trapped in Heavenly Host's hallways, strengthening the curse."

The image of those endless lists came to my mind.

"Now we are asking you to trust us that very thing that your ancestors sworn to protect, and your only hope to bring your friends back" said Ms. Kuon. "You do right in not trusting us, as you really don't know who we are, but your sister trusted us enough to talk about this book, her family past…" She made a slight pause. "…and her beloved little sister"

Ms. Kuon put one hand in her pocket, took something out of it and showed it to Ayumi.

"You are among friends now" said Ms. Kuon.

I was close enough to Ayumi to see that it was a photograph depicting Ayumi's sister, a young Ms. Kuon wearing school uniform, and Misuto as a child. They seemed happy.

After seeing the picture, Ayumi started to cry, and Ms. Kuon embraced her. She closed her eyes too, and I glimpsed a tear.

Ayumi sobbed for a while, and after that she agreed to give them the Book of Shadows. She asked her not to take the book out of Makina's house, and Ms. Kuon agreed.

"Thank you, Ayumi-chan" said Ms. Kuon.

"Don't worry" said Makina to Ayumi. "I'll make sure that the book doesn't leave this house. It's my duty as a Shinozaki" she added. "You better go home and rest."

As Makina said that I realized that it was really late, and we should be heading back home.

"What will you do now?" I asked them.

"Examine the book and try to make a plan" answered Misuto.

"Naomi-san, Ayumi-san…" said Takahiro. "Can you and your friends skip school tomorrow and come here?" he asked. "We will need them to tell us everything they can remember about Heavenly Host."

"Uhm… yes…" I replied.

"Thank you" said Takahiro.

We said goodbye to everyone and left the basement.

Once outside, Ayumi expressed her confusion about her sister's secret life, and wondered why she didn't tell her anything. I told her that maybe she wanted to keep her safe, but in truth I was as clueless as her. She also told me that she felt guilty for leaving the Book of Shadows behind just after retrieving it, and I tried to reassure her saying that we wouldn't know what to do with it anyway. She agreed, but she still seemed concerned.

"Uhm… Ayumi-san…" I said. "Would you like to come to my house and phone Satoshi and Kishinuma together?" I asked her, as I didn't want to leave her alone.

"Sure!" replied Ayumi, smiling. "I'll have to phone my mother first then."

"No problem" I happily replied.

I was glad to see her cheerful again, and we both left together to my house.


	4. Chapter 3

Well, the third chapter is finally here! I hope you like it!

It has been revealed that 'Magali Mizuki' name is actually spelled 'Magari Miduki', and I already changed the name in this chapter. I'll see if I can change her name in the previous chapters too.

Enjoy, and don't forget to comment if you want to say something; opinions, suggestions, criticism... anything! :D

**Chapter 3: Corporeal  
POV:** Ben

After Hinoe's sister and her friend left Makina's house, Misuto took the Book of Shadows without delay, made room on the table and put the book on it. It was really intimidating. The Book of Shadows was supposed to be a compendium of all kind of spells, but it had the appearance you would expect in a black magic tome. Is the cover made of human skin too…? As if it wasn't disturbing enough, the skull design in its cover gave the impression to be staring at us with its void eyes. How did they get this effect? Definitely whoever made that cover made its preferences obvious too.

Once everyone was around the book, Misuto opened it. He began to browse through it, not spending more than a second per page, until he stopped in one.

"Here… 'Raising of Corpses, a spell to resurrect the dead'" he said. "This must be the spell Hinoe's sister used."

The page was written in a mixture of French and what I recognised as Norse runes, although I couldn't read them. There were also notes in Japanese all over the page's margins, suggesting that someone, probably Yoshie Shinozaki, tried to translate it.

"Identify the deceased person… requires two casters…" Takahiro read. "Look, this part is not translated; 'the deceased's soul must be free and willing to be revived… and failure in meeting the requirements may have unexpected consequences'" he continued. "That's what Ayumi-chan couldn't read."

"Yeah…" replied Misuto with his eyes fixed on the book, and after a few seconds he continued flipping through the pages.

The next spell he found was the one used to create Heavenly Host, and even though the whole page had been crossed out, it was still legible. It was called 'Land of Corpses: A spell to open the door of the dead'. Open the door of the dead? Isn't that name too metaphorical for a spell? It creates a cursed place that kills whoever enters it! What have that to do with any door? Well… maybe that paper doll is 'the door', and 'the dead' is basically you in a few minutes… but anyways that name was misleading, to say the least.

We examined the pages containing the spell's instructions thoroughly; flipping to the next page only once everyone had finished reading the current one. I was surprised by how complex the spell was, requiring six pages to being described, but when Misuto flipped the last page and found the next spell he seemed disappointed. He went back to the last page to make sure he didn't miss one by mistake, but it was without doubt the last page giving information about the 'Land of Corpses' spell.

"What's wrong…?" I asked Takahiro.

"Although the book contains very detailed instructions about how to perform the curse, the explanation of what the spell really does is rather ambiguous, and it doesn't explain a way to cancel it at all" he replied. "So we probably would need to cancel it the hard way."

"I see…" I replied.

I didn't like that. The hard way almost always was the dangerous way too, and although it wasn't the first curse Takahiro and I had meet, breaking the curse by cancelling the spell that created it would have been way safer that what we would have to do instead. We would need a good plan.

"I suppose you two have some experience with curses" Misuto said, referring to Takahiro and me, "otherwise Hinoe wouldn't have called you for help" he continued.

"You're right" Takahiro replied. "Like Makina-senpai, Ben and I are corporeals too, and we usually deal with vengeful spirits and curses."

Talking about my nature always made me uncomfortable, and Takahiro usually tried to avoid the subject, but if we wanted to come up with a good plan we would need to make clear from the start what we were capable of, and what we weren't.

"Good" Misuto said. "Having three corporeals on our side will definitely help."

Misuto had been disquiet since he realized that the book didn't had a way to stop the spell, but Takahiro's words seemed to comfort him, although he kept his serious face.

"I am a clairvoyant" Misuto said. "Magari is a medium, and Kuon an illusionist. That's what we have to work with."

Kuon is an illusionist? I had never seen one before, but Takahiro once explained me that they were able to alter the perception of others. He told me that some of them even could introduce simple impression-like memories, making others believe they have done something or talked to someone.

"Wow!" Magari exclaimed. "With this variety of weirdoes you surely can make a good plan, Misuto."

"Weirdoes…?" Makina asked, annoyed.

"We still need to hear what Hinoe's sister's friends have to say, though" Misuto said. "But to summarise what we already know of Heavenly Host would be a good start."

We discussed everything we knew about Heavenly Host, as we would have to go there and the more we knew about that place the better, and then we kept reading the Book of Shadows until well into the night.

After many hours, Misuto began to fall asleep due to exhaustion. He had been reading the book all that time, trying to find another way to stop the curse, but he didn't succeed.

"Misuto…" Kuon said. "You should go to sleep. We will have time to read the book tomorrow."

"Kuon-san is right" Takahiro said. "We should rest."

I felt very tired myself, and Magari was already sleeping in a corner of the room. Misuto looked at her and agreed with Kuon. She woke up Magari and Makina told them where they could sleep.

Takahiro and I had been staying there for quite a while, so we already knew where our room was. Makina just had to give us a pair of old futons and we put them on the floor ourselves.

Those old futons again… That night they felt really uncomfortable.

"I'm tired of sleeping in the floor…" I said, miffed. "I miss normal beds..."

"You're a guest and you have to adapt to what Makina-senpai has" Takahiro told me. "This will probably be one of the last nights we stay here, so don't think too much about it."

He was right… Once we had solved that curse we would have to leave and take care of the next one. We didn't stay in one place for too long.

"Tsk…" I replied. "If I had known we would spend so many weeks here I would have brought a bed myself."

"You haven't complained about the futons in two months…" Takahiro said. "Are you still upset for what I told these girls before?"

"Oh… don't make me think about that..." I told him, as I didn't want to remember that embarrassing moment. "But I'm not upset. I'm just tired, nothing else."

I lied. At that moment I wasn't feeling tired at all, but I didn't know how I was feeling either. I only didn't want to think about that, but Takahiro was already concerned.

"You know…" Takahiro said, "You usually try to befriend those we help, but today you have been unusually distant with Ayumi-chan and her friend" he continued. "Is there anything you would like to talk about…?"

"I've already told you" I replied. "You were the expert there and there was nothing I could add."

I turned my body until I was laying on my side, facing away from Takahiro.

"Anyway… what's the point?" I asked. "I mean… we are here to do our part, and once the job is done we will leave, not seeing them again. So what's the point in befriending them?"

"Ayumi-chan and Naomi-chan are going through a very hard time" Takahiro replied. "They need as much support as possible."

He was right again. Damn… I was acting like a spoiled brat, and I didn't realize how selfish I sounded, but I didn't find the strength to apologize. I just stayed in silence, feeling a mix of anger and remorse. What a joke…

"Ben… I know that the more you care for someone the harder is to say goodbye" Takahiro said. "But trying to live a loveless life in order to avoid being hurt will only lead you to emptiness… It isn't worth it."

Takahiro hit the nail on the head. It was hard not to empathize with those suffering the effects of a curse. Most of them had experienced some hideous traumatic event, and our help wasn't limited to just break the curse that was afflicting them. By the time the curse was broken I already was emotionally involved with them, becoming the friend that stood by their side in their darkest hours, but there was always another curse to break and other people to help, and we couldn't stay in one place for too long. The departure part was what was getting to me. Every time we had to leave I felt like the beginning; alone, with no friends to talk and no place to call 'home', and I didn't want to feel like that anymore. I never said a word about that, but Takahiro knew me better than I thought.

"I guess you are right…" I replied.

That was the last thing that was said that night, and I fell asleep soon after.

The next morning, a kind voice woke me up.

"Good morning, Ben-kun" the voice said. "Ayumi-chan and her friends will arrive soon."

I was disoriented. Where am I? I opened my eyes and I began to recognize my surroundings, and the one who woke me up.

"K-Kuon…?" I said.

Kuon was looking at me, with her usual kind smile, and I looked at her for a few seconds while still waking up. Did I oversleep? All of a sudden I came to my senses, and the first thing I did was making sure that I was still covered with the blanket. I did it in a so clumsy way that made Kuon giggle.

"Don't worry" she said, smiling. "I didn't see anything."

Oh man… I brought my palm to my face in embarrassment, and I could feel my face blushing. I couldn't believe that I managed to make a fool of myself again without even getting off my bed. What was I thinking?

"Breakfast is ready" Kuon said. "Hurry up before it's too late!"

"Thank you, Kuon…" I replied. "Give me a minute."

Kuon left the room and I noticed that Takahiro's futon has already been tidied up. I got dressed and went to the living room, where I found Makina. She told me that Kuon woke up early to prepare breakfast for everyone and that Takahiro helped her, and that Misuto and Magari were reading the Book of Shadows in the backyard.

During breakfast Takahiro asked Misuto if he had found something new in the book that could help us.

"Yes" Misuto replied. "There is a spell called 'The Arcane Theft' that allows its caster to take control of a spell or curse from another caster, but it requires the incapacitation of the original controller."

"This is good news" Takahiro said. "Controlling Heavenly Host will make that place a lot safer."

After breakfast Misuto continued reading the Book of Shadows in the living room, and Magari sat by his side reading the book too. She was very interested in it, and her carefree closeness to Misuto seemed to discomfort him.

"Hey, Miduki-san..." Misuto said. "You are pushing me."

"What? I'm not pushing you" she replied, obviously playing dumb, and then approached him even more.

"Y-Yes you are…!" he said, visibly embarrassed. "You are doing it right now!"

That was the first time I saw Misuto lose his serious look and appear agitated, and Magari seemed to enjoy it.

"Come on Misuto! You've had the Book of Shadows long enough" she complained. "I want to read it too."

"I'm not reading it out of pleasure" he replied. "Also, don't be so familiar… It's annoying."

"Okay, okay…!" she said, and then moved away.

Misuto looked at Magari, which was with her arms crossed and pretending to be offended, and he sighed. He moved the Book of Shadows and put it between them, so they both could read it.

"Here…" Misuto said, showing her the book. "You won't push me this way."

Magari looked at the book, and then smirked at him.

"Well… it seems that's the most 'gentleman' you can be" she said, "So I must accept."

After that, Ayumi's voice could be heard from outside the house, calling Makina. I could hear other voices with her too, and I supposed that she was with her friends. I remembered what Takahiro told me the night before about being more amiable, and I offered myself to receive them, something Makina welcomed.

I opened the door, and I found Ayumi and Naomi on the other side, and behind them there were two boys, one brown-haired and the other one with short bleached hair, and a little girl. It was a little awkward to meet them after Takahiro told them that I was shy around girls I liked, but that was something I had to cope with. Damned Takahiro… Couldn't he just do a normal introduction for once? Anyways, I managed to stay calm and not blush too much.

"Hey" I greeted.

"Good morning, Ben" Naomi replied.

Before I could say anything else, the bleached haired boy approached me, not looking friendly.

"Is he that guy that bothered you?" he asked Ayumi.

W-What…!?

"N-No, dumbass!" Ayumi replied, embarrassed. "You've got the wrong person!"

The bleached haired boy's expression changed as he realized the mistake, and she began to argue with him, scolding him for his attitude.

"Did I do something wrong…?" I asked, puzzled.

"Oh, no" Naomi replied. "It's just that Kishinuma is a little hot-headed."

As I looked at the bleached haired guy, I wondered if he was referring to Misuto; his attitude was especially cold towards Ayumi.

"Is he a friend of yours?" the brown-haired guy asked Naomi.

"Kind of" she replied. "He's the pupil of that curse expert."

The brown haired guy approached me, and he looked much friendlier than the other guy.

"It's nice to meet you" he said. "I'm Satoshi Mochida."

"I'm Ben" I replied. "Nice to meet you, too."

Then, the bleached haired guy approached us, while Ayumi distrustfully looked at him.

"Hey… sorry for what I said before" he said. "I'm Yoshiki Kishinuma."

"No worries" I replied. "I'm Ben."

His apologies were sincere, so I had no problem accepting them. Despite the intimidating aura he had before, he didn't seem a bad guy; otherwise he wouldn't be their friend. They seemed all very close to Ayumi, and I couldn't help but feel a little envious of her.

"I… I'm Yuka Mochida…!" said the little girl.

Until now she had been shyly standing aside, almost hiding behind her brother, but as no one introduced her she did it herself. She looked nervous, and being a shy person myself, I tried to comfort her.

"Nice to meet you, Yuka" I said while smiling, and noticed how close she was to Satoshi. "Have you come to help your brother?"

"Yes!" she replied, smiling. "I will help big brother too…!"

I was happy to see that I managed to encourage her a little.

"Ben" Ayumi said, "Is Makina home?"

"Oh, Yes" I replied. "Please, come in."

I went back to the house and Ayumi and her friends followed me. They met Makina and the others, and although Misuto presence upset Yoshiki, this time he restrained himself. Takahiro summarized what we planned to do and why we needed their testimony, and Ayumi's friends proceeded to explain everything they could remember about Heavenly Host. As each of them explained what they knew about that damned school, we began to put together the pieces and comprehend that damned school. The closed spaces, the earthquakes, the three children spirits... It wasn't just a school plagued with vengeful ghosts; it followed a pattern, had its rules and, most importantly, it appeared to have limitations. We had to be sure, so Takahiro and Misuto asked them for details whenever they thought necessary.

At one point, Misuto asked them about what one of the three ghost children, the one named Yuki, told them after appeasing Sachiko.

"A new 'Sachiko'…?" Misuto asked Ayumi. "Are you sure she used those words?"

"Yes, completely sure" Ayumi replied.

"Well, this strengthens our hypothesis that Yoshie Shinozaki is the real core of the curse" explained Takahiro. "Sachiko was just a cog in the machine, and was replaced once she couldn't continue her role there."

"Her role…?" Ayumi asked him.

"Torture those who enter Heavenly Host and produce them as much pain and suffering as possible" he replied. "That's what vengeful spirits do."

"Damn it…!" complained Yoshiki. "Why do innocent people have to suffer for something that someone did fifty years before?"

"It has nothing to do with vengeance" Makina said. "The purpose of these tortures is to strengthen the curse with the suffering of its victims."

Makina was right. Curses feed on negative emotions, no matter if they come from an alive person or a ghost. That's why it's so usual to find a vengeful spirit behind a curse; they are in a state of perpetual suffering, and this allows a curse to feed on them perpetually. Sometimes, curses produce victims, and if these victims become new vengeful spirits the curse begins to feed on them too, growing stronger. It can only occur by chance in curses controlled by a vengeful spirit without knowledge of curses, but Heavenly Host seemed to be designed to exploit that very feature. Surely Yoshie had the knowledge to do so, but why would she?

"Mochida-kun" Takahiro said. "You were the only one that read Yoshie's diary. Can you tell us what was written there?"

"Uhm… yes" Satoshi replied.

He explained everything he could remember of the diary contents, and there were two revealing points there. The first one, Yoshie's desire and inability to stop Sachiko from killing children, and the second one, very disturbing, the mention of a 'dark will' infiltrating her. These two revelations puzzled me.

"But… wasn't Yoshie the one controlling the curse?" I asked in bewilderment. "Why wasn't she able to stop Sachiko then? What's with that 'dark will' thing…?"

"It's the darkening" Magari said. "That 'dark will' that Yoshie describes is a darkening possession."

Magari, that until now had been assuming a passive role, began to explain what that 'darkening' was. I thought she was unenlightened in terms of occult knowledge, but her intervention proved me wrong. The only ones that ever heard of that 'darkening' were Makina and Takahiro, and none of them knew about it enough to relate it to what Yoshie was describing.

According to Magari, the darkening is like a disease that overflows your mind with your usually repressed negative emotions, until you begin to lose control of yourself and lose consciousness. She explained that, at that point, the darkening employs your darker emotions to create a new will that replaces your own while your original self is dormant. She said that darkening possessions are cyclical at first, but the affected person usually remains unaware of these 'blackouts' until it's too late. In the end, the result is the same as being possessed, with the only difference being that the one possessing you is the darkest version of yourself.

"Yoshie became aware of her possession due to the diary entries she wrote while possessed" added Magari.

"It's just as Miduki says…" Naomi said, frightened.

"But didn't Yoshie die?" Ayumi asked. "How could she be affected by the darkening disease?"

"Well, I said 'disease', but the darkening is actually a curse related to dark magic" Magari explained. "It affects your soul, so it doesn't matter if you are alive or a ghost."

Makina looked especially concerned after this discovery.

"I always thought that Yoshie became a vengeful spirit…" Makina remorsefully said. "How could I be so blind…?"

We all thought that Yoshie was a vengeful spirit, and that we just had to appease her. In fact, we would still think that if it wasn't for Satoshi. But the one controlling the curse wasn't a vengeful Yoshie, but en evil alter ego possessing her.

"Can we still appease Yoshie while in that state?" I asked.

"No" Magari replied. "The darkening must be reverted first."

"How?" Misuto asked.

"The darkening is a curse; it draws its strength from negative emotions" Magari explained. "To break the possession you must overflow the victim with positive emotions, like you would do with a vengeful spirit."

Magari smirked as she was talking. We were dependent on her, and she seemed to enjoy it.

"The good news is that anything capable of ending a darkening possession would be able to appease a spirit too" Magari said. "The bad news is that Yoshie Shinozaki is a fifty years old ghost with nothing beloved left in this world."

"What? We cannot appease her?" I asked her. "What are we supposed to do then?"

"We will have to destroy her" Misuto answered.

The room fell silent at the seriousness of Misuto's words.

"W… What…!?" I said, shocked.

"Even possessed, Yoshie Shinozaki is still the controller of the curse" Misuto explained. "We need to incapacitate her so that Hinoe's sister can use the Arcane Theft spell in the Book of Shadows to take control of Heavenly Host."

Is this the only way…? I looked at Takahiro, hoping that he would come up with a better idea, but just by looking at his face I realized that Yoshie was beyond hope.

"But… what will happen to Yoshie's true self then…?" Ayumi asked, concerned.

Ayumi's words seemed to irritate Misuto, that looked at her and smirked.

"Regrets, again?" He said in a teasing tone. "Aren't you a troublesome girl?"

"Misuto…!" Kuon complained.

This time Yoshiki couldn't restrain himself.

"Who the hell do you think you are, you little brat!?" he said. "Don't you dare talking to her again in that tone…!"

Misuto gave him a cold glare while Ayumi and Satoshi restrained Yoshiki, trying to calm him down.

"Misuto, that's enough!" Kuon said.

There was a heart-breaking mix of anger and sadness in Kuon's voice, causing Misuo to firmly close his eyes and make a regretful expression. He took a deep breath and then looked at Ayumi, now without his defiant look.

"There is no point in reviving your friends if Heavenly Host kills them again" Misuto said. "You must take control of the curse and make the school safe first."

I understood what Misuto meant. Even if we could revive those killed in Heavenly host, it would be naive to think that the possessed Yoshie would just let us 'steal' the souls that were keeping her world together. But we didn't know if Yoshie knew what the effects of the curse were when she casted the spell, and we could end up destroying an innocent soul.

"Ayumi-chan, you won't do anything wrong" Takahiro told her. "You'll only have to take control of Heavenly Host, so it doesn't disappear before we can revive anyone."

Ayumi was in a tight spot. She was the owner of the Book of Shadows, and we needed her cooperation to succeed. She looked at her friends, and then after a while she looked at Misuto again.

"I'll do it" she decisively said.

"All right" Misuto replied.

I was surprised at Ayumi's determination. For a moment it was like seeing Hinoe herself. Sure she was her sister, but I wouldn't have expected that kind of reaction from her. Maybe Ayumi wasn't as different to her sister as I thought.

"You can't go to Heavenly Host and expect Yoshie to be just sitting around" Makina said. "The moment she realizes you are not some regular victims to play with she will kill you straightaway."

"You're right" Misuto replied. "As long as Yoshie is in control of Heavenly Host she will be able to kill us at any moment, but we already know how to make her lose control of the school temporally." Misuto made a slight pause and smirked. "Actually, Hinoe's sister and her friends already did it once."

"What do you mean…?" Ayumi asked him, clueless.

"We will have to appease the three children spirits again" Misuto replied. "The reason you and your friends survived Heavenly Host was that neither Sachiko nor Yoshie saw you as a threat, and were just playing with you. By the time you appeased the children spirits it was already too late for Yoshie or Sachiko to stop you, as the three children spirits are the pillars of Heavenly Host, and without them the school is too powerful to control."

"I see your point" Takahiro said, "but I don't think we are fast enough to appease the three children again before Yoshie catches us first."

"We must do it without Yoshie suspecting anything" Misuto replied.

"Have you taken a look at us?" Magari said. "It's obvious that we are a bunch of weirdoes. There is no way that we can fool Yoshie pretending to be some high-school dudes trapped there by accident."

"That's why Hinoe's sister and her friends must do it" Misuto replied.

Everyone in the room was shocked at Misuto's proposal.

"Are you out of your mind!?" Makina protested. "Are you really suggesting sending these kids to Heavenly Host alone?"

"I thought you only needed me to go to Heavenly Host!" Ayumi complained. "And that you would help me!"

Ayumi was clearly against the idea of putting her friends in danger, and she looked agitated.

"I know" Misuto replied, "But you wouldn't go without our assistance."

"What do you have in mind, Misuto-kun?" Takahiro asked.

"Even if we can't physically go to Heavenly Host, we can still help" he said. "Miduki is a medium; she can keep contact with Hinoe's sister and her friends while they are in Heavenly Host. That way we can give them instructions and come to their rescue in case they are in trouble."

"Wow!" Magari said, "I've never thought of using my powers that way."

"It's still too dangerous" Makina replied "What if something attacks them?"

I could understand Misuto's point. There was no way we could defeat Yoshie's spirit while being in control of Heavenly Host; she would draw the strength of the hundreds of vengeful spirits that were trapped within the school halls, overpowering us. Making Yoshie lose control of Heavenly Host would cut of that energy influx, leaving her vulnerable and also making Heavenly Host relatively safer, but sending Ayumi and her friends in advance was a risky move.

"No…! Let me go alone" Ayumi said. "I don't want to lose more friends…"

"It's Okay" Satoshi told Ayumi. "Sihonhara, Suzumoto, Morishige and Ms. Yui were our friends too."

"Yeah!" Yoshiki said. "Anyways, like hell I will let you go there alone, Shinozaki."

"B-But…" Ayumi muttered, doubtful.

"We'll be fine" Naomi said, trying to comfort Ayumi.

They seemed decided to help Ayumi to the point of going back to that cursed school. She definitely had good friends…

"I… I will help too…!" Yuka shyly said.

"No way" Satoshi replied. "You will stay here, Yuka."

Satoshi's order disgusted Yuka, which pouted at him and then looked at Misuto.

"Please, let me go with them…!" she said with longing eyes. "I can help too…!"

"You better stay here…" Misuto replied, disconcerted by Yuka's attitude. "I'm not sure you would be of any help."

That answer shocked Yuka, and then she looked offended.

Satoshi, Yoshiki and Naomi were decided to help, but Ayumi was still reluctant to involve her friends in the plan. Understandable, as even without raising Yoshie's suspicions, the other vengeful spirits trapped in that school could still attack them. What should we do in that case? Go to Heavenly Host prematurely and risk ourselves being killed by Yoshie? If only they had a way to defend themselves…

"Hey, Misuto" Takahiro said. "Makina is right; if they get attacked before appeasing the three ghosts, we will be screwed" he explained. "But… how about sending Ben with them?"

What the…!?

"He already knows how to fend off vengeful spirits, and could protect Ayumi-chan and her friends long enough to appease the three ghosts again" he said. "He already looks Ayumi's age, and would only need Kuon-san to use her powers to conceal that he is a corporeal."

Misuto looked at Takahiro surprised, and then at Kuon.

"Can you do that?" he asked her.

"Yes" Kuon replied, smiling. "As long as Ben-kun doesn't act weird and attracts too much attention, I can keep him concealed."

"Great" Misuto said, smirking.

Wait… I have to go to Heavenly Host too? Without Takahiro…? I hoped Takahiro knew what he was doing.

"What the heck, Takahiro…!" I whispered to him, as I didn't want Ayumi and her friends to notice my nervousness. "I've never done anything like this alone!"

"Don't worry; you're prepared enough to do it" he replied, smiling. "Besides, you'll be on your own only the first part."

I was not so sure, but Takahiro had much more experience and I decided to trust him.

"Hey…!" Yoshiki said. "Can you explain again what we are supposed to do? I got lost during the 'medium' part…"

Misuto explained our plan so everyone could understand it.

The next morning, Ayumi, Naomi, Satoshi, Yoshiki and I would perform the Sachiko Ever After charm incorrectly and go to Heavenly Host. As the cursed Heavenly Host was a replica of the original school, the three children body-parts would be in the same spot they were when Ayumi and her friends went there for the first time. The body parts would be in one of the three dimensions, though, but as we were more people than closed spaces the school had, at least one of us would be able to find them. Before going to Heavenly Host, Magari would create a telepathic link between us and Misuto's team, allowing them to give us instructions and advice while, as the conversation would take place inside our heads, we would appear just silent. Appeasing the children's ghosts would merge the dimensions together, eventually revealing the true, non-controlled Heavenly Host. Then, Misuto, Magari, Kuon, Takahiro and Makina would perform the Sachiko Ever After charm incorrectly and go to Heavenly Host too, find Yoshie's ghost in the school's infirmary, and 'defeat' her. Finally, Ayumi would perform the 'Arcane Theft' spell in the Book of Shadows and become the new controller of Heavenly Host, keeping the school in existence and giving us time to revive everyone, or at least try it. In either case, the curse would be over.

We spent the rest of the day discussing our approach with Ayumi and her friends, using the plans of Heavenly Host that Makina had to make sure everyone knew where the body parts were hidden. Takahiro also gave them some advice.

"Avoid the redder vengeful spirits, don't get separated in any circumstance, and keep your paper scrap somewhere safe" he told us.

Ayumi and her friends went back to their homes as if they had been in their school all the time, while the rest of us stayed in Makina's house for one last night.

It had been an exhausting day, and thankfully I could take a bath and relax before going to sleep. As I closed my eyes and stayed in silence in the warm water, I began to overhear someone talking. It was Kuon.

"You've been very rude with Ayumi-chan today…" Kuon said, sounding worried. "Misuto… What's bothering you so much…?"

"Nothing… I'm okay" Misuto replied. "Don't worry, it won't happen again."

I could hear Misuto and Kuon talking in their room. Their voices came from what seemed like an old vent in the bathroom.

"No, you're not okay…" she replied. "Please Misuto, don't keep it to yourself."

There were a few seconds of silence, and I thought that their conversation was over, but Misuto replied again.

"I… I don't know what happened to me" he said. "It is… I feel like I'm carrying the weight of the world on my shoulders… Am I doing right? What would do Hinoe in my place?"

"You are doing it right, Misuto" Kuon replied. "Takahiro-senpai and Makina-senpai have a lot of experience and they both agree with your plan."

"I know…" Misuto replied. "But is Hinoe's sister the one that worries me."

Ayumi…

"Every time I look at her face I see Hinoe… but she is the opposite of her" he said. "To think that we depend on her… that our lives will be in her hands…"

"There is no point worrying about that, Misuto… It is outside your control" Kuon replied. "Also, Hinoe believed she could do it, and we should do the same."

"But I can't trust her..." he said, and made a brief pause. "She performed a dark magic spell she couldn't understand half its words…! How are we supposed to rely on someone like her?"

"She was desperate and full of grief" Kuon replied. "This time she has someone to guide her."

There was another brief silence.

"Damn…" Misuto complained. "Why has to be Hinoe's sister the one with the book?"

"Stop that, Misuto…!" Kuon complained. "You avoid saying her name, as if she isn't even human to you…!"

Her voice had again that sad tone…

"Her name is Ayumi, and you must stop blaming her for Hinoe's death… It's not her fault…" Kuon said. "Hinoe gave her life to save Ayumi-chan because that's what big sisters should do…!"

The house remained silent for a moment, and it hurt my heart when I realized that Kuon began to sob.

"I… I'm sorry, Kuon…" Misuto apologized. "I didn't mean to…"

Kuon's sobbing ceased.

"I'm fine…" she said. "Please, Misuto… Promise me you will be kinder to Ayumi-chan from now on."

"Y-Yeah, don't worry" he replied. "I promise."

Kuon thanked him, and then I heard Misuto say something about some sleep pills and left the bedroom.

That night Takahiro and I talked again.

"Thank you for being friendlier to Ayumi and her friends today, Ben" he said.

"No problem" I replied. "You were right; they need as much support as possible."

Takahiro made a satisfied smile.

"You know…" I said, "It is surprising how far Ayumi and her friends are willing to go to save their friends."

"They all have the 'survivor guilt'" he replied. "That school marked them for life, and they will do anything to undo that harm."

"I kind of feel sorry for that little girl, Yuka" I said. "She will have to see how her brother goes to that dangerous place again. She even wanted to go with him."

"Yes…" he replied, "She definitely admires her brother a lot."

"She reminded me of my little brother…" I said. "Although he should have Satoshi's age by now."

Takahiro remained silent.

"Takahiro… Are you sure it's a good plan…?" I asked. "The idea to die in that place without being able to say goodbye to my brother… frightens me."

"Don't worry" he replied, "I'm completely sure you can do it, Ben."

"Hope you're right…" I said. "Have you ever seen a curse so powerful before…?"

"Yes, many years ago… in Europe…" he replied, and then made a brief pause. "Anyways, if you are in danger I'll come to save you" and then smiled at me.

His words relieved my worries, and at some point I managed to fall asleep, oblivious to the deadly trap that was awaiting us the following day: Heavenly Host Elementary School.


End file.
